We bid the North Island farewell this morning as we departed for the South Island by ferry. I spent the entire 3-hour voyage on deck and was rewarded for enduring the chilly wind when a pod of about 100 dolphins seemingly came out to investigate the ferry. During their brief visit, I got several great images.

The ferry route to Picton concludes with a narrow corridor formed between a massive peninsula and the island of Onauku pictured below.

After docking, we drove 2 hours to Kaiteriteri, where we are staying for three nights, steps from the lovely beach.